Whats up people? My name is Nick and I live in Lake Charles (noone knows where this is so about 2 and a half hours from the Galveston/Houston area.) I would like to learn this year but I was talking with a local shop and they said the wind normally dies in June. South Padre is 8 hours away and they say that is a good learning spot but I would rather not wear a wetsuit and not have to wait until next march before I learn. So it looks like maybe Florida is a good option? (I'm 6 and a half hours from Pensacola, are there any good schools around there?) I will probably be ready around september? I just ordered my trainer and it should come in Wednesday, I ordered a HQ Rush 3 meter. I want to learn that as much as possible and then go take lessons.

I'm not sure if this part matters. I'm 5-10 and about 173 lbs. I dont have any surfing background but I have done a good bit of kneeboarding and not much wakeboarding so pretty much going to be starting from the beginning.

Florida is also the doldrums through the summer. It will pick up again in October-November. This is not to say you can't catch a decent day or two in Pensacola during the summer, but it's a long drive for you just to get "skunked" by the wind. (I know where Lake Charles is.)

Hatteras Island, NC is your best bet for the summer months if you're willing to travel to a great USA learning spot. If you're intent on Florida, the Keys are best during the summer (but you might as well travel to Hatteras if you're willing to go all the way to the Keys). You might want to think again about the Galveston area. There are instructors there and some good shallow spots for beginners. It's close enough to Lake Charles that you could watch the wind forecasts and drive over on short notice.

Fly the heck out of your new trainer kite (pick any park or field around Lake Charles). Fly it whenever you can. Once it's second nature (when you can fly it under control without watching it), check out some instructors in Galveston or even closer to home. You don't need the world's best location to learn (but S. Padre and Hatteras are great options if you can get there).

Corpus Christi is you only option during the summer months unless you go during a storm. You might wait till the fall mid to late Sep when the fronts start blowing thru. Houstonkiteboarding.com you can get all the info you need for them to set something up. Both Houston and CC are good spots to learn at. Nice shallow bay waters. If you just have to learn you can fly to the Dominican. You will get the wind you want but it is chaos there and you will be in deep water with the instructor talking to you over a headset.

yeah, definitely check out Corpus Christi if you can, it's a great place to learn and ride, and our wind is above average all year round, since your relatively close you can scan the forecast (or your school can update you) to get the best conditions, visit us at www.361KITE.com if you are considering coming down

So if I'm going to start around September sounds like corpus is where I need to be? I looked it up and found that the water should still be warm then right? Also besides 361kiting any schools that y'all would recommend? I new to all this, I'm not sure if one school is better than another? Thanks for all the responses guys, 2-3 days I'll have my trainer.